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Framed : America's 51 constitutions and the crisis of governance

In his widely acclaimed volume Our Undemocratic Constitution, Sanford Levinson boldly argued that our Constitution should not be treated with "sanctimonious reverence," but as a badly flawed document deserving revision. Now Levinson takes us deeper, asking what were the original assumptions underlying our institutions, and whether we accept those assumptions 225 years later. In Framed, Levinson challenges our belief that the most important features of our constitutions concern what rights they protect. Instead, he focuses on the fundamental procedures of governance such as congression.Read more...

Of compromise and constitutions --
What is the pint of preambles? --
How does a "republican form of government" differ from "democracy"? --
Elections and a republican form of government --
Bicameralism --
If two opinions are good, is a third opinion (with the power of most of the time absolutely to kill the decision of the first two opinion-makers) even better? --
Presidentialism (and "gubernatorialism") --
So what, precisely, does one get, as a constitutional matter, upon being elected president? --
Presidential duration in office, the possibility of impeachment, and the role of the vice president --
Divided government --
How "independent" a judiciary do we really want? --
On the judiciary (and supreme court) as guardian of the constitution --
Federalism --
Amendment --
Emergency powers.

Responsibility:

Sanford Levinson.

Abstract:

In his widely acclaimed volume Our Undemocratic Constitution, Sanford Levinson boldly argued that our Constitution should not be treated with "sanctimonious reverence," but as a badly flawed document deserving revision. Now Levinson takes us deeper, asking what were the original assumptions underlying our institutions, and whether we accept those assumptions 225 years later. In Framed, Levinson challenges our belief that the most important features of our constitutions concern what rights they protect. Instead, he focuses on the fundamental procedures of governance such as congression.

Reviews

Editorial reviews

Publisher Synopsis

"From America's greatest revolutionary constitutionalist, a profoundly important book, that will be at the center of the next reform movement."--Lawrence Lessig, author of Republic, Lost "Anyone who cares about America's future should read Sandy Levinson's book. His fresh thinking illuminates old debates and his understanding of political nuance gives power to his analysis. You don't have to agree with him to know you are in the presence of a scholar who is a constitutional giant." --Senator Bill Bradley "Sandy Levinson has authored an important, and cautionary, book-one that needs to be read as much by those who disagree with him as by those who share his analysis." --Glenn Harlan Reynolds, Professor of Law, University of Tennessee College of Law, founder of Instapundit "I've been Framed! Levinson sparks a long-overdue conversation about the relationship between America's current governing crisis and the American Constitution-or rather, 'constitutions, ' since he takes the unusual and valuable step of looking at state constitutions as well. His message: Pay attention to the 'Constitution of Settlement, ' the established rules of the political game, not just the 'Constitution of Conversation' that sparks continuing legal dispute. It is a measure of the success of his stimulating book that he makes what once seemed settled appear newly ripe for debate." --Jacob S. Hacker, Stanley Resor Professor of Political Science, Yale University; co-author, Winner-Take-All Politics "The most remarkable feature of Levinson's most remarkable book is his effort to place himself and his readers in the positions of the founding fathers and the founding generation." --Tulsa Law ReviewRead more...